First Holy Communion is a very important day in a child’s life, and it should be celebrated! Here are some ideas to host a party that is sure to be remembered.
Then he took the bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which will be given for you; do this in memory of me.”
Luke 22:19
First, be sure to take a LOT of pictures! Although your child will receive the Eucharist many, many times, there is only one FIRST Communion. I took my First Communicant’s picture outside the church in several different spots, inside near stained glass windows depicting the Eucharist, praying, receiving the Body and Blood for the first time, and in front of the altar with our family, our Priest, his grandparents, great grandparents, and basically everyone who attended.
Food
After the Mass, it was time to party! Our appetizers doubled as centerpieces for each table – trays of cheese, crackers, and grapes. And a staple of liturgical celebrations – Sparkling Grape Juice. These delicious snacks disappeared very quickly!
For the main course, we kept it simple with build your own sandwiches, chips, fruit, and veggies. And of course, I try to never miss an opportunity to make a cross out of food.
Body of Christ Rosary Cupcakes
I LOVE to decorate with food. Who wants to have a boring cupcake, when you can have a whole rosary made out of cupcakes? An entirely accurate rosary would need about 90 cupcakes. Our party did not have enough guests to justify that many cupcakes, so I made a modified 3-decade rosary.
To decorate most of the cupcakes, I placed a Nilla Wafer on top with a frosting cross to represent the Body of Christ. For contrast, I iced the Our Father cupcake “beads” and the cross in blue. (If the party had been for a girl, I would have used pink.) You can adjust this idea for any sized party! I finished off the dessert table with my son’s baptism candle.
Gift Ideas
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What party would be complete without gifts? This is a great opportunity to build a child’s collection of religious items such as bibles, books, rosaries, and more. Here are just a few of our favorite gift ideas:
- My Big Book of Catholic Bible Stories (Click here to see an idea for celebrating the Annunciation that came from this book!)
- The Catholic Children’s Bible This one has great age-appropriate reflections for featured stories.
- A rosary that’s not breakable. After my son broke the rosary he received for his Baptism when praying a little bit too fervently, we began using one like this.
Decorations can even double as gifts. My son liked this decoration that we hung on the door so much that it is still hanging in his room three years later.
More ideas for celebrating the Sacraments:
Hosting a Simple Confirmation Party
An Easy Way to Give the Sacraments a Place of Honor in Your Home
